“Young people are usually wanting to know what can be done, what can we do, how do we live our lives,” says Mannell, while older generations are “more willing to be stuck in the bad news” about environmental issues.

In place of a formal lecture, Thursday’s event allowed students to present their year’s research.

Colleen Grant presented her research on sustainable options for the future of farming in western Canada. Grant was impressed by how many people were interested in the series, which discussed local environmental movements.

“Halifax as a city has so much interest in sustainability,” says Grant.

Speakers in the series included Bill Rees, who came up with the idea of ecological footprints, and Oran Young, an expert on the politics of the Arctic and international governance. Others involved were local architects of recently designed sustainable buildings in Halifax, such as the Seaport Farmers Market and Dalhousie’s Mona Campbell building, which houses the ESS college.

“We gave the final word to the students,” says Mannell, on the decision to have students present at this event.

He thinks it’s good for the public to hear from “people willing to put positive energy into problems that seem big and insurmountable.”